Masked Lapwings
This is a bird well known for its gutsy behaviour. Whether it be for swooping, its raucous alarm call or unusual parenting habits, a family of these birds tends to make an impression. While their reputation is for being anything but timid, I’ve seen a wonderful gentle side to them MORE…
The Australian Magpie
The Australian Magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a bird familiar to most Aussies. It has a mixed reputation. Some call it a nuisance for sometimes swooping at people at breeding time. Others welcome it into their gardens as a handsome and normally gentle bird. I fall firmly into the latter group MORE…
Common Mynas
The Common Myna, Acridotheres tristis has earned the reputation of being one of the worst introduced animals in Australia. It’s likely that if you live in Sydney, Melbourne, north Queensland or Brisbane, you’re already familiar with them MORE…
Noisy Miners
As people make more and more changes to the Australian environment some critters are disappearing. But others, like the Noisy Miner, Manorina melanocephala, seem to be doing very nicely MORE…
Noisy Miner, Common Myna
A lot of people confuse the Noisy Miner with the Common Myna. It’s easy to distinguish between the two. Here’s a bunch of photos to help MORE…
Geese teeth
There’s an old expression that said something in short supply was ‘as rare as hens’ teeth’. That might sound profound on a chicken farm but how much does this really apply to birds? When I told some friends I’d seen geese with fine sets of teeth no one believed me, so in the interests of setting the record straight I offer the following undoctored photo MORE…
Birds’ knees
One glance at a bird would convince most people that its knees bend the opposite way to ours. But do they really? And in fact, is it even correct to call those things knees? MORE…
Black and white birds
This guide should help you identify some of those common black and white birds on Australia’s east coast. I’ll start with the biggest bird in this group and then work my way down to the smallest MORE…
Sulphur-crested Cockatoos
If you see some spectacular large white Australian birds making a call sounding like someone being strangled, then chances are you’re in the presence of some Sulphur-crested Cockatoos MORE…
Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos
Now we’re talking about one of my favourite birds. So what is it about Yellow-tailed Black Cockatoos that makes them so special? MORE…
Glossy Black Cockatoos
The Glossy Black Cockatoo (Calyptorhynchus lathami) is a handsome bird that might not be around too much longer. As long as we keep clearing its habitat we push it closer to extinction. But as is so often the case, we can still do something about it MORE…
Common water birds around Sydney
Sydney’s permanent large ponds, like the lakes in Centennnial Park, are great spots to see all sorts of water birds. Want to know what kind of birds they are? This guide is far from complete, but at least it can help you fit a name to the most likely culprits MORE…
Rainbow Lorikeets
As humans clear forests and replace them with farms, roads, buildings and ornamental gardens, they’re creating niches that suit some animals more than others. One bird that’s doing very nicely out of this arrangement is the Rainbow Lorikeet MORE…
Starlings
For most of the Australian population, when you talk about a starling you’re thinking of the Common Starling. But there’s another type, seen in the north-eastern tropics, which deserves a mention — the Metallic Starling MORE…
Australian White Ibis
It probably seemed like a good idea at the time. Why not breed an Australian bird and release it in — wait for it — Australia. That can’t lead to any surprises, can it? MORE…
Bird politics
I used to think human politics were complicated. Then I started learning about bird politics. Now, I should really say I’m talking about bird behaviour here because the word ‘politics’ has too many connotations of kissing babies in exchange for votes. And I’ve never seen a bird stoop that low. Yet birds have lives rich in complex interactions with other creatures MORE…
Is the Tawny Frogmouth an owl?
Nope. It’s similar, and related, but it’s not an owl. This article explains the differences MORE…
Pacfic Black Ducks
This is a common duck throughout Australia. Chances are that if ducks are visiting a permanent Australian lake, pond or wetland then Pacific Blacks could be among them MORE…
Black Swans
The black swan is related to geese and other water fowl and is the largest bird in that group. This handsome creature is the official bird emblem of Western Australia, although it’s common in the other states as well MORE…
Are they crows or ravens in Sydney?
Most people in Sydney think they can identify a crow when they see one, so it might come as a surprise to find out more about these handsome black birds. If you’re in Sydney, that bird which looks like a crow is probably a raven MORE…
Brush Turkeys
You’ve just got to admire Brush Turkeys. They’re big birds. They conveniently hang around on ground level where they’re easier to see, and they make an amazing nest MORE…
Darters
I admire these critters. They swim well, fly well and know a thing or two about catching fish as well MORE…
Australian Pelicans
It’s hard not to notice a pelican when it’s nearby, because these birds are big. I’m talking about a bird with a wingspan as big as 2.5 metres MORE…
